Midterm Review
Earth Science
Quarter 1 & 2 Vocabulary:
absolute age dating
atoms
cementation
Chemical weathering
cleavage
compression
continental drift theory
convection
convergent boundaries
correlation
crust
crystals
density
divergent boundaries
electron
element
epicenter
erosion
foliations
fossil
fracture
half-life
hardness
hot spot
igneous rock
inner core
intrusion
law of cross-cutting
relationships
law of superposition
magnetic field
mantle
melting
metamorphic rock
mid-ocean ridge
natural selection
neutron
organic
outer core
paleomagneitc record
Pangaea
permeability
physical property
physical weathering
porosity
Primary (P) wave
proton
radioactive decay
recrystallization
relative age dating
Sea-floor spreading
Secondary (S) wave
sedimentary rock
seismogram
solidification
streak
subduction
surface wave
Transform boundaries
Trench
Unconformity
uniformitarianism
volcano
weathering
Midterm Review
Earth Science
You should be able to:

Order mystery liquids based on their density (which will float and which will sink)
o What is the density of water? (include units)
o Describe what happens to liquids with higher densities and lower
densities.


Determine if something is a mineral based on the five properties of minerals
o List the 5 properties of a mineral
 1.
 2.
 3.
 4.
 5.
Determine the atomic number and mass of an element
o Use the following image to identify the mass
number and atomic number of the element.
o The mass number represents what subatomic
particles?
o The atomic number represents what subatomic
particles?

Identify the properties of subatomic particles (their charge, where they are
located, their function)
o Protons
o Neutrons
o Electrons

Describe each of the following mineral tests below and include an example of
each.
o Hardness
Midterm Review
Earth Science
o Color
o Streak
o Luster
o Pattern of Breakage
o Crystal system

Identify the two ways that minerals form
o 1.
o 2.

Classify igneous rocks based on where and how they crystallize and their
color/mineral content
o Intrusive
o Extrusive
o Felsic
o Intermediate
o Mafic
o Ultramafic
Midterm Review
Earth Science

Identify the processes that change rocks from one type to another by sketching
the rock cycle and labeling the arrows between rock types

Differentiate between porosity and permeability and identify how grain size and
sorting affects both
o Porosity
o Permeability
o Describe the porosity of:
 Well-sorted ------------------------------------------------------Poorly sorted
o Describe the porosity of:
 Clay sized-----silt sized----sand sized----pebble sized----cobble sized

Identify the composition and properties of each of earth’s internal layers
o Crust
o Mantle
Midterm Review
Earth Science
o Outer Core
o Inner Core

Differentiate between the agents of chemical and physical weathering
o What causes physical (mechanical) weathering?
o What causes chemical weathering?

Identify what earth processes help erode rocks and sediments
o 1.
o 2.
o 3.
o 4.
o 5.

Identify evidence that supports Wegener’s continental drift theory and Plate
Tectonics theory
o Evidence that supports continental drift theory:
o Evidence that supports plate tectonics theory:

Differentiate between the three types of plate boundaries and the features
formed at each boundary
o Convergent Boundary:
o Divergent Boundary:
Midterm Review
Earth Science
o Transform Boundary:

Determine how to find the epicenter of an earthquake using seismograms
o Use the following seismograms explain how to determine the location of
the epicenter:

Identify the properties of P, S and Surface waves
o Primary waves
o Secondary waves
o Surface waves

Use the laws and principles of relative age dating to determine the age of a rock
bed
o Law of superposition
o Law of original horizontality
Midterm Review
Earth Science
o Law of cross-cutting relationships
o Law of inclusion
o Law of contact metamorphism

Identify how the movement of a plate over a hot spot forms volcanic islands
o Sketch how the Hawaiian islands have formed over the Hawaiian hotspot.
Include the direction of motion of the plate.

Identify the processes that occur to form an unconformity
o Angular Unconformity
o Nonconformity
o Disconformity

Find the age of a fossil using the half-life of Carbon-14
o Carbon 14 has a half-life of ______________________. What percentage
of atoms would remain after 17,190 years?
Midterm Review
Earth Science